Apartments’ solar panels cut costs

The 641 solar panels installed atop Bonne Terre Village Apartments’ carports last year have generated more than 150,000 kilowatts of electricity, according to property managers.

Chance RyanStaff Writer

The 641 solar panels installed atop Bonne Terre Village Apartments’ carports last year have generated more than 150,000 kilowatts of electricity, according to property managers.Houma’s two mixed-income apartment communities for the elderly were retrofitted with the photovoltaic solar panels in late 2011 as part a national property developer and managers’ renewable energy initiative.The panels generate about 147 kilowatts of power per hour in direct sunlight, covering the cost of 50 to 60 percent of the buildings’ hall lights, elevators, air-conditioning systems and other power-operated amenities, said Tim Talley, HRI Properties facilities manager. The installation is part of a project at six residential facilities in Shreveport, New Orleans and Houma that are run by HRI Properties. The $10 million project, paid for by HRI, is expected to produce about 1.4 million kilowatt hours of solar energy per year from all its properties.HRI representatives said it is the largest solar installation in the state. The property owners pay a fixed rent equal to roughly 75 percent of the electricity savings, Talley said.Melissa Ardoin, property manager of the apartments, said she isn’t sure of the exact savings, but she and the other 115 Bonne Terre residents are enjoying it. “It’s working real well,” Ardoin said. “It’s keeping the cost down for the housing meters, and the residents are enjoying the covered parking.” It’s saving at least a couple hundred dollars a month for residents’ power bills, she said.Talley said the company would like to expand its solar program to other states. It decided to launch the project in Louisiana because of the Department of Natural Resources’ EmPower Louisiana program, which received $71.7 million in federal stimulus dollars in 2009. The state also offers an income tax credit for residential building owners who install wind- or solar-energy systems. The solar panels sit atop more than 100 carports in Bonne Terre’s parking lots and were installed in less than two months.

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